covers on flight line???

[LegacyAirman]

When I was a Crew Chief on A-10's we were issued "bump caps". They were sort of a hard baseball cap, not as sturdy as a regular hard hat. The first day I reported in there was a sign on the bulletin board in the line shack that said:

Squadron Head Bashing Contest
Sgt XXX leads with 9 stitches
Sgt YYY is in second place with 6
Sgt ZZZ is in third with only 3

The issue was "Hog Bites", the danger of slicing open your head or even back on the various projections underneath. So, it really boils down to ORM (risk vs. benefit).

[Eclipse]

That's a good idea!

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/FIBREMETAL-Vented-Bump-Cap-8XC42

I see you can also buy just the shell, presumably for any other ball cap.
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/FIBREMETAL-Bump-Cap-Inner-Shell-2KFF7


Gonna have to consider getting one of these.

[vento]

It is definitely a local call for policy. In most cases, the real reasoning behind it is safety.

For example for first time cadets going on their orientation flights, we do specifically ask them to remove their patrol hat or cap so that it doesn't get blown off and cadets ended up chasing his cover into an active runway, taxiway, or worse into a turning prop. Granted the chances of that might be remote, but still a good safety practice.

We ask members to wear proper hat (cover) when working airshows.

In short, please don't automatically assume that "no hats (covers) in flight line" is a bad policy setup by some ego driven members.   :angel:

[Major Lord]

Chasing their caps onto a flight line? I guess we are practicing "diversity": you have a squadron of golden retrievers! Note that the police above are wearing headgear, which they will do by default, since they are under arms. I submit that the non-wear of covers on flight lines is a guideline, and one local command can alter to provide the minimal risk to all participants at any activity using common sense and experience. Of course, this pre-supposes that local command has either/or common sense or experience....

Major Lord

[vento]

Chasing their caps onto a flight line? I guess we are practicing "diversity": you have a squadron of golden retrievers!

Your statement is funny in a way and at the same time a bit insulting calling members dogs. But I guess that is the nature of CT and it is all in good fun.

Note that the police above are wearing headgear, which they will do by default, since they are under arms.

Not sure what police you are referring to since I was only referring to CAP members, not LEO or anything else. The example I gave referred to cadets on their first O'Rides, cadets that are excited and can easily forget the safety briefing when walking near a CAP airplane or other airplanes that are taxing on the flightline. Besides, we can only safeguard our own members as we have no saying about what other groups or agencies act or how they wear their uniforms.

I submit that the non-wear of covers on flight lines is a guideline, and one local command can alter to provide the minimal risk to all participants at any activity using common sense and experience. Of course, this pre-supposes that local command has either/or common sense or experience....

And I believe that is the right thing to do. Way too often we paint the commander or activity director who issues such guidelines as someone who lacks common sense and it hurts the general well being of our members.

[Eclipse]

I submit that the non-wear of covers on flight lines is a guideline, and one local command can alter to provide the minimal risk to all participants at any activity using common sense and experience. Of course, this pre-supposes that local command has either/or common sense or experience....

And I believe that is the right thing to do. Way too often we paint the commander or activity director who issues such guidelines as someone who lacks common sense and it hurts the general well being of our members.

This is OK:
"As the activity commander, I believe the FOD issues on a flightline are more critical then then heat stress or cold.  Therefore I direct that the designated
flightline will be a 'no-hat / no salute area'..."  (or the inverse)

This is not OK:
"As the activity commander, I believe the FOD issues on a flightline are more critical then then heat stress or cold.  Therefore I direct that the designated
flightline will be a 'no-hat / no salute area', and since this is clearly the only correct choice, I will tell everyone that this is a national regulation, despite the fact that I have nothing to support this assertion, and then I will get indignant when anyone challenges this clearly correct choice..."

Absent a clear prescription from the regulations or a higher HQ directive, commanders have a fair amount of latitude in these matters, however they
should not just make things up to support their opinions when they are not confident enough to simply direct their participants' actions.   There's plenty of places that things are ambiguous or left to local choice, but commanders who just make things up call all of their decisions into question, and rightly so.

[abdsp51]

Depending on the circumstances defenders will wear their berets however it's generally accepted that the flt line is a no hat no salute area.  If an engine is spinning up or down they will not wear berets, during a security incident they may or may not he wearing a beret.  That pic shown looks like a publicity shot overseas somewhere.

[Extremepredjudice]

You guys are ignoring his ACTUAL question:

sorry all, i wasnt clear enough. I meant will during squadron drill and they are drilling on the ramp at the local airport.

[lordmonar]

You guys are ignoring his ACTUAL question:

sorry all, i wasnt clear enough. I meant will during squadron drill and they are drilling on the ramp at the local airport.

No.....I already answered it.

It is up to the flight line ownere or the commander of the activity if the flight line owner does not care one way or the other.

You go to Nellis AFB on a NON airshow day...and go on the flight line...hats off....as per Nellis' policies.
You got to Nellis AFB on an airshow day....and it is up to the event director.....In the case where that was me...it was hats on.

So at local airport X.....see the FBO for their policy.  The commander can make the call based on those policies.

End of argument.....it is not rocket science guys.

[Thrashed]

In my 15,000 hours of flight time, Ive never seen a hat get sucked off and ingested into a C172.

[AngelWings]

In my 15,000 hours of flight time, Ive never seen a hat get sucked off and ingested into a C172.

I hope some day to accrue that many flight hours.

[titanII]

sorry all, i wasnt clear enough. I meant will during squadron drill and they are drilling on the ramp at the local airport.

FWIW, my squadron meets at an airport which closes at sunset, so if we're drilling on the ramp before sunset, no caps. If it's after sunset (more often than not, it seems), caps on.

[PHall]

In my 15,000 hours of flight time, Ive never seen a hat get sucked off and ingested into a C172.

But I have seen hats blown off the heads of the wearers by the prop wash of a taxiing C172.
And the hats can go all sorts of places, including some that could cause damage, i.e. the intake of a jet engine.
Once the hat comes off your head you have no control where it goes.
People have and will do some really stupid things, like walking into a spinning prop, while chasing hats on ramps.

[Eclipse]

And the hats can go all sorts of places, including some that could cause damage, i.e. the intake of a jet engine.

Not if it's a robohat!

[PHall]

And the hats can go all sorts of places, including some that could cause damage, i.e. the intake of a jet engine.

Not if it's a robohat!

What did you do, steal that from Inspctor Gadget?

[ol'fido]

To the OP: It depends on the size and activity at your local airport. The little airport where I went to meetings as a cadet had a guy come out about 8 am, unlock the building, and then do a few chores. He then went home until someone called his for fuel. If nothing else happened, he would go back about 5pm and lock up(We had our own key). We drilled on the ramp with covers and if someone, landed and wanted to taxi up on the ramp instead of to the hangars, we would move off to the side of the ramp and take our covers off until he shutdown and them back to drilling.

[Thrashed]

In my 15,000 hours of flight time, Ive never seen a hat get sucked off and ingested into a C172.

But I have seen hats blown off the heads of the wearers by the prop wash of a taxiing C172.
And the hats can go all sorts of places, including some that could cause damage, i.e. the intake of a jet engine.
Once the hat comes off your head you have no control where it goes.
People have and will do some really stupid things, like walking into a spinning prop, while chasing hats on ramps.

Yea, but I've never seen a Jet near a CAP plane. Around here, we don't even operate out of airports that have jets.

[Eclipse]

Yea, but I've never seen a Jet near a CAP plane.

[a2capt]

Yea, but I've never seen a Jet near a CAP plane. Around here, we don't even operate out of airports that have jets.

Then you have not been to California, and I'd imagine Nevada, Texas, Florida, and a few of the other populous states.

[davidsinn]

In my 15,000 hours of flight time, Ive never seen a hat get sucked off and ingested into a C172.

But I have seen hats blown off the heads of the wearers by the prop wash of a taxiing C172.
And the hats can go all sorts of places, including some that could cause damage, i.e. the intake of a jet engine.
Once the hat comes off your head you have no control where it goes.
People have and will do some really stupid things, like walking into a spinning prop, while chasing hats on ramps.

Yea, but I've never seen a Jet near a CAP plane. Around here, we don't even operate out of airports that have jets.

Geez, my podunk little munis have jets. And they have had CAP aircraft at them.